[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 167 (Monday, August 29, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59261-59263]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-20559]
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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
[Docket No: SSA-2016-0041]
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Request and
Comment Request
The Social Security Administration (SSA) publishes a list of
information collection packages requiring clearance by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) in compliance with Public Law 104-13, the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, effective October 1, 1995. This notice
includes revisions of OMB-approved information collections.
SSA is soliciting comments on the accuracy of the agency's burden
estimate; the need for the information; its practical utility; ways to
enhance its quality, utility, and clarity; and ways to minimize burden
on respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology. Mail, email, or fax your
comments and recommendations on the information collection(s) to the
OMB Desk Officer and SSA Reports Clearance Officer at the following
addresses or fax numbers.
(OMB)
Office of Management and Budget, Attn: Desk Officer for SSA, Fax:
202-395-6974, Email address: [email protected].
(SSA)
Social Security Administration, OLCA, Attn: Reports Clearance
Director, 3100 West High Rise, 6401 Security Blvd., Baltimore, MD
21235, Fax: 410-966-2830, Email address: [email protected].
Or you may submit your comments online through www.regulations.gov,
referencing Docket ID Number [SSA-2016-0041].
I. The information collection below is pending at SSA. SSA will
submit it to OMB within 60 days from the date of this notice. To be
sure we consider your comments, we must receive them no later than
October 28, 2016. Individuals can obtain copies of the collection
instrument by writing to the above email address.
Methods for Conducting Personal Conferences When Waiver of Recovery
[[Page 59262]]
of a Title II or Title XVI Overpayment Cannot Be Approved--20 CFR
404.506(e)(3), 404.506(f)(8), 416.557(c)(3), and 416.557(d)(8)--0960-
0769. SSA conducts personal conferences when we cannot approve a waiver
of recovery of a Title II or Title XVI overpayment. The Social Security
Act (Act) and our regulatory citations require SSA to give overpaid
Social Security beneficiaries and Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
recipients the right to request a waiver of recovery and automatically
schedule a personal conference if we cannot approve their request for
waiver of overpayment. We conduct these conferences face-to-face, via
telephone, or through video teleconferences. Social Security
beneficiaries and SSI recipients or their representatives may provide
documents to demonstrate they are without fault in causing the
overpayment and do not have the ability to repay the debt. They may
submit these documents by completing Form SSA-632, Request for Waive of
Overpayment Recovery (OMB No. 0960-0037); Form SSA-795, Statement of
Claimant or Other Person (OMB No. 0960-0045); or through a personal
statement submitted by mail, telephone, personal contact, or other
suitable method, such as fax or email. This information collection
satisfies the requirements for request for waiver of recovery of an
overpayment, and allows individuals to pursue further levels of
administrative appeal via personal conference. Respondents are Social
Security beneficiaries and SSI recipients or their representatives
seeking reconsideration of an SSA waiver decision.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information
collection.
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Average
Number of Frequency of burden per Estimated
Modality of completion respondents response response total annual
(minutes) burden (hours)
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Title II, Personal Conference, 404.506(e)(3) and 19,663 1 30 9,832
404-506(f)(8): Submittal of documents,
additional mitigating financial information,
and verifications for consideration at personal
conferences....................................
Title XVI, Personal Conference, 416.557(c)(3) 56,464 1 30 28,232
and 416-557(d)(8): Submittal of documents,
additional mitigating financial information,
and verifications at personal conferences......
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Totals...................................... 76,127 .............. .............. 38,064
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II. SSA submitted the information collections below to OMB for
clearance. Your comments regarding the information collections would be
most useful if OMB and SSA receive them 30 days from the date of this
publication. To be sure we consider your comments, we must receive them
no later than September 28, 2016. Individuals can obtain copies of the
OMB clearance packages by writing to [email protected].
1. Request for Earnings and Benefit Estimate Statement--20 CFR
404.810--0960-0466. Section 205(c)(2)(A) of the Act requires the
Commissioner of SSA to establish and maintain records of wages paid to,
and amounts of self-employment income derived by, each individual as
well as the periods in which such wages were paid and such income
derived. An individual may complete and mail Form SSA-7004 to SSA's
Data Operations Center in Wilkes-Barre, PA, to obtain a Statement of
Earnings or Quarters of Coverage. SSA uses the information Form SSA-
7004 collects to identify respondent's Social Security earnings
records, extract posted earnings information, calculate potential
benefit estimates, produce the resulting Social Security statements,
and mail them to the requesters. The respondents are Social Security
number holders requesting information about their Social Security
earnings records and estimates of their potential benefits.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information
collection.
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Average burden Estimated total
Modality of completion Number of Frequency of per response annual burden
respondents response (minutes) (hours)
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SSA-7004.................................... 40,090 1 5 3,341
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2. National Beneficiary Survey--0960-0800. SSA is continuing the
National Beneficiary Survey (NBS), a survey which gathers data from SSI
recipients and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI)
beneficiaries about their characteristics; well-being; and other
factors that promote or hinder employment. In particular, the survey
seeks to uncover important information about the factors promoting
beneficiary self-sufficiency and, conversely, factors impeding
beneficiary efforts to maintain employment. We use this data to improve
the administration and effectiveness of the SSDI and SSI programs.
These results are valuable as SSA and other policymakers continue
efforts to improve programs and services that help SSDI beneficiaries
and SSI recipients become more self-sufficient.
Background
SSDI and SSI programs provide a crucial and necessary safety net
for working-age people with disabilities. By improving employment
outcomes for SSDI beneficiaries and SSI recipients, SSA supports the
effort to reduce the reliance of people with disabilities on these
programs. SSA conducted the prior NBS in 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2010,
and it was an important first step in understanding the work interest
and experiences of SSI recipients and SSDI beneficiaries, and in
gaining information about their impairments; health; living
arrangements; family structure; pre-disability occupation; and use of
non-SSA programs (e.g., the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program).
The prior NBS data is available to researchers and the public.
The National Beneficiary Survey (NBS)
The primary purpose of the new NBS-General Waves is to assess
beneficiary well-being and interest in work; learn
[[Page 59263]]
about beneficiary work experiences (successful and unsuccessful); and
identify factors that promote or restrict long-term work success.
Information collected in the survey includes factors such as health;
living arrangements; family structure; current occupation; use of non-
SSA programs; knowledge of SSDI and SSI work incentive programs;
obstacles to work; and beneficiary interest and motivation to return to
work.
We conducted the first wave of the NBS-General Waves in 2015. We
will further conduct subsequent rounds in 2017 (round 2) and 2019
(round 3). The information we will collect is not available from SSA
administrative data or other sources. In the NBS-General Waves, the
sample design is similar to what we used for the prior NBS collections.
Enhancement of the prior questionnaire includes additional questions on
the factors that promote or hinder employment success. In 2015, we
conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews to provide SSA an in-
depth understanding of factors that aid or inhibit individuals in their
efforts to obtain and retain employment and advance in the workplace.
We use the qualitative data to add context and understanding when
interpreting survey results, and to inform the sample and survey design
of rounds 2 and 3.
Respondent participation in the NBS is voluntary and the decision
to participate or not has no impact on current or future receipt of
payments or benefits. Respondents are current SSDI beneficiaries and
SSI recipients.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information
collection.
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Average Estimated
Number of Frequency of burden per total annual
Modality of completion respondents response response burden
(minutes) (hours)
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2017
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Cross-Sectional Samples
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Representative Beneficiary Sample............... 4,000 1 50 3,333
Successful Workers.............................. 4,500 1 70 5,250
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Subtotal.................................... .............. .............. .............. 8,583
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2019
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Cross-Sectional Samples
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Representative Beneficiary Sample............... 4,000 1 50 3,333
Successful Workers.............................. 4,500 1 70 5,250
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Longitudinal Samples
rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr---------------------------------------------------------------
Successful Workers.............................. 2,250 1 70 2,625
rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
Subtotal.................................... .............. .............. .............. 9,458
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Total Burden............................ 17,750 .............. .............. 18,041
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Dated: August 23, 2016.
Naomi R. Sipple,
Reports Clearance Officer, Social Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 2016-20559 Filed 8-26-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4191-02-P